Objectives

• Analyse how Morrison uses the founding legend of the Bottom and Shadrack's shell-shock to establish race, trauma and community as the novel's structural foundations.
• Explain how Morrison presents Eva Peace's burning of Plum and Hannah's death by fire as morally ambiguous acts that challenge conventional judgement.
• Analyse how Morrison constructs the Nel–Sula friendship as a site of identity formation, using specific moments in Chapters 4, 7 and 9.
• Write an evidenced analytical paragraph that tracks Morrison's language choices — diction, imagery, syntax — across at least two moments in the novel.
• Evaluate Morrison's narrative decision not to judge Sula morally, drawing on the novel's context and its ending in Chapters 11.
• Discuss how the tunnel collapse in Chapter 10 functions simultaneously as communal tragedy, racial allegory and structural climax.

The sequence

1. Lesson 1: The Bottom's Founding Lie: Race, Place and Shadrack's Return (Ch.1)

   55 min · ch. 1

   Do now

   Calling a hilltop 'the Bottom' suggests a sense of irony or contradiction, as it implies that something elevated is perceived as low or undesirable. A writer might want readers to feel a mix of curiosity and discomfort, provoking them to reflect on the complexities of a community's identity shaped by deception. This initial instinct hints at deeper themes of perception versus reality that could unfold in the narrative.

   Teacher input

   Model a close reading of the paragraph in Chapter 1 where Shadrack, recently back from the front lines, looks into the hospital mirror and fails to recognize his own hands: "He could not feel his feet or his fingers … but he could see, even in the semi-darkness, the monstrous and unmanageable hands." Discuss how Morrison's use of the words "monstrous" and "unmanageable" shifts the trauma of war onto the Black soldier's body, illustrating how the mirror, a traditional symbol of identity, fails to reflect a coherent self. Guide students on how to incorporate this analysis into a sentence that identifies the technique, quotes the language, and explains its impact.

   Independent task

   Students will write two analytical paragraphs — each containing at least eight sentences — addressing the following question: How does Morrison utilize the founding legend of the Bottom (found in the opening pages of the novel, prior to the start of Chapter 1) and Shadrack's return in Chapter 1 to illustrate that the Black community of Medallion is characterized by dispossession and psychological fracture? Each paragraph must include at least one specific quote from the assigned pages, identify a language or structural technique, and discuss its impact on the reader's perception of race and place. Students are to submit their written paragraphs at the end of the lesson.

   Exit ticket

   In one sentence, name the single technique Morrison uses most powerfully in the Shadrack mirror passage and state what it makes the reader understand about what war does to a Black man's sense of self.

2. Lesson 2: Mothers Who Kill: Eva, Plum and the Morality of Love (Ch.3, Ch.5)

   55 min · ch. 3, 5

   Do now

   Read Eva's explanation to Hannah in Chapter 5 — 'I held him close first … I had to keep him out of it' — without any teacher commentary. Write one sentence expressing what you think Eva believes she is doing, and another sentence indicating whether you believe Morrison wants the reader to agree with her. Be prepared to defend both sentences.

   Teacher input

   Model a close reading of the moment in Chapter 5 when Eva pours kerosene over the sleeping Plum and rocks him before striking the match: 'She rolled a bit of newspaper into a tight stick about six inches long, lit it and threw it onto the bed.' Explore how Morrison’s straightforward syntax—short, declarative, almost procedural—denies the reader the comfort of melodrama. Notice how the word 'tight' reflects Eva's own controlled grief rather than rage. Guide students in arguing that it’s not just Morrison's plot that complicates moral judgment; her style plays a crucial role as well.

   Independent task

   Students are tasked with writing two analytical paragraphs in response to the following question: How does Morrison depict maternal love as intertwined with violence and sacrifice through Eva's act of burning Plum in Chapter 5 and her recounting of her suffering in Chapter 3 — particularly the moment where Eva talks about losing her leg? Each student must include at least one quote from Chapter 5 and one from Chapter 3, identify the narrative technique Morrison employs in each (such as free indirect discourse, symbolic imagery, or syntactic control), and discuss how these passages together challenge any straightforward moral interpretation of Eva’s character. The paragraphs are to be submitted at the end of the lesson.

   Exit ticket

   Write one sentence explaining why Morrison's choice of plain, declarative syntax in the kerosene scene in Chapter 5 makes it harder, not easier, for a reader to condemn Eva Peace.

3. Lesson 3: The Drowned Boy and the Divided Self: Nel, Sula and Chicken Little (Ch.4, Ch.6)

   55 min · ch. 4, 6

   Do now

   Re-read the two sentences in Chapter 4 that describe what Nel and Sula do after Chicken Little sinks: 'Sula simply watched … Nel simply stood.' Take a moment to note your thoughts on the repetition of the word 'simply.' What effect does Morrison create by using the same adverb for both girls in this moment?

   Teacher input

   Model a close reading of the passage in Chapter 4 where Sula swings Chicken Little by his hands, causing him to slip into the river: 'His little legs were bicycling through the air … then he was gone.' Discuss how the phrase 'bicycling through the air' captures the boy's innocent, childlike motion just as he meets his tragic end. Note how 'then he was gone' — four simple words that lack a dying verb — reflects the community's tendency to avoid confronting uncomfortable truths. Encourage students to link this stylistic observation to the broader themes of shared guilt and silence present in the novel.

   Independent task

   Students will write two analytical paragraphs addressing the following question: How does Morrison portray the death of Chicken Little in Chapter 4 and Nel's depiction of domestic contentment in Chapter 6 — particularly in the section where Nel reflects on her marriage to Jude — to illustrate that Nel and Sula have internalized their shared guilt in contrasting ways: one through conformity and the other through freedom? Students are required to quote at least one phrase from each chapter, pinpoint a specific technique in each quotation, and discuss how the two passages enhance one another. The paragraphs are to be submitted at the end of the lesson.

   Exit ticket

   In two sentences, explain what the word 'simply' in the passage after Chicken Little drowns tells us about how Morrison distributes moral responsibility between Nel and Sula at this moment in Chapter 4.

4. Lesson 4: Return, Rupture and Ajax: Sula's Freedom and Its Costs (Ch.7, Ch.8, Ch.9)

   55 min · ch. 7, 8, 9

   Do now

   Without referencing the novel, I would expect a character to feel a mix of betrayal and heartbreak when her best friend sleeps with her husband. I wonder if Morrison will allow Nel to experience those exact emotions.

   Teacher input

   Model a close reading of the passage in Chapter 9 where Nel visits the dying Sula, and Sula says: "I sure did live in this world ... I got my mind. And what goes on in it. Which is to say, I got me." Highlight how Morrison uses a three-part syntactic structure, with each clause getting shorter, to peel away everything external until only selfhood remains. Teach students to interpret this as Morrison's clearest expression of Sula's philosophy of identity, and encourage them to argue that the syntax itself serves as the argument.

   Independent task

   Students will write two analytical paragraphs addressing the following question: How does Morrison portray Sula's relationship with Ajax in Chapter 7 — particularly when Ajax leaves after Sula expresses her desire to possess him — and Sula's speech on her deathbed in Chapter 9 to illustrate the dual nature of female freedom as both thrilling and destructive? Students are required to include at least one quote from each chapter, identify the technique Morrison employs in each case, and discuss what the two excerpts reveal about the cost Sula incurs for rejecting the roles that the Bottom imposes on women. The paragraphs are due at the end of the lesson.

   Exit ticket

   Return to the two sentences you wrote at the start of the lesson. In one new sentence, explain whether Morrison allows Nel to feel what you predicted — and what Morrison's actual presentation of Nel's response in Chapters 7 and 8 reveals about the novel's argument on female friendship versus marriage.

5. Lesson 5: The Tunnel, the Cry and the Ending: What Nel Mourns (Ch.10, Ch.11)

   60 min · ch. 10, 11

   Do now

   Read the final paragraph of Chapter 11, where Nel cries out in the cemetery: 'We was girls together … O Lord, Sula.' In two sentences, express who or what you believe Nel is mourning at this moment and whether you think Morrison has been setting the stage for this ending since the very first chapter.

   Teacher input

   Model a close reading of the tunnel collapse sequence in Chapter 10: 'The ice below, the ice above … and the only sound was the deep, rushing water and their own voices.' Analyze how Morrison's chiastic structure — 'ice below, ice above' — confines the community between two identical forces, reinforcing the novel's message that the people of the Bottom are caught between a racist society above and their own internalized anger below. Guide students on how to use the term 'chiasmus' correctly and how to link this specific structural device to the novel's political commentary on race and community.

   Independent task

   Write a detailed analytical essay of 600–800 words in response to the question: 'Morrison refuses to judge Sula morally because Sula's freedom is the novel's argument, not its problem.' To what extent do you agree, considering the novel as a whole? Your essay should: start with a clear thesis that presents a strong position on the question; include a close reading of at least one moment from Chapters 1–5 (the early sections of the novel), at least one moment from Chapters 7–9 (Sula's return and death), and at least one moment from Chapters 10–11 (the tunnel collapse and Nel's grief); quote and analyze specific words or phrases from each moment, identifying at least one literary technique for each quotation; address the counterargument — that the novel does prompt readers to question Sula's choices — in at least one paragraph; and conclude by elucidating what Morrison's refusal to judge Sula indicates about the novel's broader themes related to race, gender, and community in the Bottom. Avoid summarizing the plot. Ensure every claim is backed by a quotation from the text.

   Exit ticket

   In two full sentences, state the thesis of the essay you have just written and identify the single piece of textual evidence from anywhere in the novel that you think most powerfully supports it — then explain, in a third sentence, why that evidence could not have come from any novel other than Sula.

Activities

Assessment

• Lesson 1 exit ticket: checks whether students can name a specific technique in the Shadrack mirror passage and articulate its effect on the reader's understanding of race and trauma.
• Lesson 2 exit ticket: checks whether students understand how Morrison's syntactic plainness in the kerosene scene functions as a moral argument, not merely a stylistic choice.
• Lesson 3 exit ticket: checks whether students can explain how the repeated adverb 'simply' distributes moral responsibility between Nel and Sula at the moment of Chicken Little's death.
• Lesson 4 exit ticket: checks whether students can revise their initial prediction about Nel's response and connect Morrison's actual presentation to the novel's argument about female friendship.
• Lesson 5 exit ticket: checks whether students can articulate a clear thesis and identify their strongest piece of evidence, demonstrating readiness to redraft the essay independently.

Standards covered

Common Core 11 12

• RL.11-12.1 — Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters uncertain.
• RL.11-12.3 — Analyse the impact of the author's choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story or drama, including where a story is set, how the action is ordered, and how the characters are introduced and developed.
• RL.11-12.4 — Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyse the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone.
• RL.11-12.6 — Analyse a case in which grasping a point of view requires distinguishing what is directly stated in a text from what is really meant.

AP Literature

• Literary Argumentation (LAN-1) — Develop a thesis that makes a defensible claim about a literary text and support it with evidence and commentary.
• Figurative Language (FIG-1) — Explain the function of specific words and phrases, including connotative and figurative meanings, in a literary text.
• Narration (NAR-1) — Explain the function of point of view, narrative structure, and narrative distance in a literary text.
• Character (CHR-1) — Explain the function of a character, including their development and relationship to other characters, in a literary text.

AQA

• AO1 — Read, understand and respond to texts; maintain a critical style and develop an informed personal response; use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations.
• AO2 — Analyse the language, form and structure used by a writer to create meanings and effects, using relevant subject terminology where appropriate.
• AO3 — Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written and received.
• AO5 (Language Paper, transferable) — Communicate clearly, effectively and imaginatively, selecting and adapting tone, style and register for different forms, purposes and audiences.

Edexcel

• AO1 — Articulate informed, personal and creative responses to literary texts, using associated concepts and terminology, and coherent, accurate written expression.
• AO2 — Analyse ways in which meanings are shaped in literary texts, with reference to language, form and structure.
• AO4 — Explore connections across literary texts, including the ways in which texts relate to each other and to literary traditions, movements and contexts.

IB Lit

• Criterion A — Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the literary work and its context, including the author's choices of form, structure and language.
• Criterion B — Analyse and evaluate the ways in which the author's choices of language, structure, technique and style shape meaning.
• Criterion C — Organise ideas in a focused, coherent and persuasive argument supported by sustained textual evidence.